The medical term for the condition known as tongue-tie is “ankyloglossia”. It results when the frenulum (the band of tissue that connects the bottom of the tongue to the floor of the mouth) is too short and tight, causing the movement of the tongue to be restricted.

Tongue-tie is congenital (present at birth) and hereditary (often more that one family member has the condition). It occurs relatively often: between 0.2% and 2% of babies are born with tight frenulums.

Breastfeeding can be significantly impaired when a baby has tongue-tie. Some of the issues that are associated with tongue-tie for both mother and child include:

trouble with latch-on

low weight gain

fussiness

painful breastfeeding

plugged ducts

impaired milk supply

speech issues later in childhood

The good news is that there are excellent resources to help you learn how to know if your baby has tongue-tie and what you can do about it.

Here are some of the best.

KellyMom, the leading breastfeeding site on the internet, offers extensive information about tongue-tie. Sections on the site include:

Breastfeeding a Baby with Tongue-Tie

Great basic info on breastfeeding and tongue-tie

Q&As

Moms’ stories

In-depth and professional information

General articles (not breastfeeding related)

Journal Articles

DrGhaheri.comis a new site created to help educate breastfeeding mothers and health care professionals about how tongue-tie can affect babies and their nursing mothers. The site is run by Dr. Bobby Ghaheri, a specialist based in Portland, Oregon who specializes in helping babies with breastfeeding difficulties. He has personal experience as a father with the tongue-tie issue, as both of his daughters had significant problems breastfeeding.

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Alicia Bayer lives with her husband and five children in Westbrook, Minnesota. She and her husband have been practicing Attachment Parenthood since the birth of their first child. She has maintained her website "A Magical Childhood" for over ten years and her writing has been featured in books, magazines, newsletters, television and online. You can reach Alicia at alicia.bayer@gmail.com and find her on Pinterest at Magic and Mayhem.